After months of planning and preparing we just canceled our vacation.

Doing that provoked many emotions.

• Disappointment
• Some anger,
• Sadness,
• Loss – we experienced all of them.

But we decided to make the best of our situation and have a staycation.

My husband and son had been dreaming about seven days of camping and fishing in the Boundary Waters wilderness area. Away from all electronics, work, and distractions, they planned to connect more with each other and the Lord.

Our daughters and I had planned a low key time at a motel along the shore of Lake Superior. We hoped for days of sitting at the shore, hours of writing without responsibilities or interruptions. We planned long leisurely times with the Lord and with each other.

Then our son developed some physical problems.

• After doctor visits and many tests, we decided we needed to stay home.
• We still had no diagnosis.
• Dan wasn’t comfortable taking him into a wilderness area not knowing what was wrong.
• So the decision was made – stay home.

Now what?

• We could pout and get angry or we could make other plans.
• Dan decided to keep his time off and stay home.
• Eric decided to take a half day off but to work the rest of the week.
• Our daughters are freelancers so they could work when they wanted to or when necessary.

We decided to “count it all joy”.

James 1:2-42 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have [its] perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.

What did that mean for us?

• Dan made a list of all the projects he had to do around the house and prioritized them.
• We decided to do some fun things we’d been wanting to do but hadn’t had time.
• We invited friends for dinner.
• Eric got a lot more tests but we are still waiting for a diagnosis.
• We had long lazy morning quiet times with the Lord.
• We spent time together relaxing, biking, writing, and enjoying each other.

No, it wasn’t what we planned, but it’s been good.

• Dan is feeling great to have accomplished so much off his to do list.
• We’ve been able to continue with testing to get a diagnosis for Eric.
• We’ve done some fun family things that just didn’t fit into our busy schedules.
• We had a delightful evening with friends.

Have you ever had to cancel a trip or vacation? What did you do instead?

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